Security arrangements have been finalised and the distribution of polling material has been completed and voting in the first phase of local bodies’ elections in Sindh will be held today (Sunday).
After setting up of control room at the Election Commission of Pakistan’s office in Islamabad, a monitoring cell has also been established at the office of Sindh Election Commissioner in Karachi in order to ensure strict surveillance of the polling process.
People will cast their votes in Sukkur, Shaheed Benazirabad, Larkana and Mirpurkhas divisions. As many as 149 candidates have already been elected unopposed on 1, 631 seats in Khairpur, Sukkur and Ghotki. Similarly, 255 candidates in Shaheed Benazirabad division, 437 in Larkana division and 160 in Mirpurkhas division have been elected unopposed.
Strict security measures have been put in place at 464 polling stations in Sukkur which the ECP has declared ‘extremely sensitive’. Meanwhile, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan has decided to challenge the Sindh High Court’s decision with regard to the local government elections in the Supreme Court.
The SHC on Friday rejected a plea from major political parties in the province to delay the local government elections. The MQM-P was preparing a constitutional petition in the Supreme Court, party sources said. The party have reservations over delimitation of constituencies, which were made to benefit a party, sources said. “The work on voters lists was yet to complete, moreover there are reservations on lists having errors and irregularities,” according to sources.
